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LIBRARY 

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THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


T~    r 


omo 


Indian 
BasKets 


AND  THEIR   MAKERS 


CARL   PURDY 


Porno  Indian  Baskets 


and 


Their  Makers 


By 


CARLtPURDT. 


1902: 

C.    M.    DAVIS  COMPANY   PRESS, 
LOS   ANGELES,   CAL. 


POMO     INDIAN     BASKETS. 


IFTY    }rears    ago    the     many    wild,    mountain- 
hemmed  valleys  of  Lake  and  Mendocino  coun 
ties   were  each  the  home    of    one    or   several 
small  Indian  tribes  entirely  independent  of  all 
others,    and  speaking1  a  language  at  best  only 
partly  intelligible  to  their  nearest  neighbors. 
The   Franciscan   Fathers,   who   had  gathered 
the  tribes   of  the    central    and    southern    parts    of    California 
into    the    Missions,   now  California's   most    picturesque    ruins, 
had    never    gained     a    hold    on    the     secluded    mountaineers. 


A  FBATHEKED  JEWEL — A  POMO  '"E-Pi-CA." 


[Plate  /] 


The  traders  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  whose  influence  upon 
the  Indians  of  the  great  Northwest  is  still  so  apparent,  had 
not  come  so  far  south,  while  the  Mexican  soldiers  who  attempted 
to  penetrate  these  fastnesses  met  with  a  reception  so  warm 
that  it  was  still  fresh  in  their  memory  when,  in  the  year  1846, 
the  United  States  succeeded  Mexico  as  sovereign  of  California 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS.  S 

At  that  date  these  little  tribes  were  scarcely  more  affected  by 
civilization  than  when  Columbus  discovered  the  New  World. 

In  the  early  'Fifties,  American  settlers  began  to  push  into 
the  beautiful  valleys  which  had  so  long  been  their  homes. 
At  first  they  were  not  molested  by  the  Indians,  and  it  was 
only  when  unprincipled  scoundrels  had  kidnapped  their  chil 
dren  by  scores  to  be  sold  into  slavery  and  otherwise  most  out 
rageously  maltreated  them  that  they  rose  and  killed  several  of 
their  worst  enemies.  The  usual  result  happened.  The  Indians 
of  the  Clear  Lake  region  fled  to  an  island  which  stands 
among  the  marshes  at  the  upper  end  of  the  lake,  an  ancient 
stronghold  of  theirs.  They  were  pursued  by  soldiers  and  de- 


SHI-BU — 71  STITCHES  TO  THE  INCH — LIFE- SIZE.  [Plate  2} 

feated.  The  peace  then  made  has  never  been  broken.  The  In 
dians  returned  to  their  homes,  where  they  still  live. 

The  tribes  of  northeastern  Mendocino  county  were  of  a  dif 
ferent  race  and  more  warlike  character.  Their  resistance  was 
more  stubborn  ;  and,  according  to  the  old  settlers,  there  was  a 
considerable  period  of  frontier  warfare.  When  the  Indians  of 
that  region  were  conquered  they  were  placed  upon  the  Round 
Valley  Indian  reservation,  where  they  now  are. 

The  leading  tribes  of  Mendocino  county  are  the  Sanelos  of 
Sanel  Valley,  the  Yokaias  of  Ukiah  Valley,  theBalloKai  Porno 
of  Potter  Valley,  the  Ukis  of  Round  Valley,  and  the  Calpellas. 
Pour  tribes  lived  about  the  upper  end  of  Clear  Lake  ;  of  these, 
three  are  practicall3T  consolidated.  In  Big  Valley,  west  of  the 
lake,  were  the  Kabenapo  and  the  Talanapo.  Most  of  these  are 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS.  7 

now  collected  in  a  mission  near  Kelseyville  under  the  care  of  the 
Franciscan  Fathers.  At  the  southern  end  of  the  lake  are  the 
Lower  Lakes,  the  Makhelchel  of  some  writers.  In  northern 
Sonoma  county  the  Wappos  lived  in  Alexander  Valley,  the  Gal- 
linomeros  about  Healdsburg.  Along-  the  Mendocino  coast  were 
several  other  tribes,  while  the  lesser  valleys  each  harbored  one. 
In  all  there  were  something-  like  thirty  of  these  little  tribes,  no 
one  of  which  probably  numbered  over  500  people,  each  with  its 
own  chief  and  a  langfuag-e  more  or  less  distinct  —  as  separate 
from  its  neighbor  as  France  is  from  Italy.  Often  the  Indians 
at  one  end  of  a  valley  could  not  converse  with  their  neighbors 
at  the  other  end;  and,  indeed,  at  this  late  day,  the  Indians 


f 


A  BAM-TUSH  BOWL.  [Plate  j] 

aboriginal  to  the  two  ends  of  Ukiah  Valley  (which  is  about 
eight  miles  long-)  find  English  the  more  convenient  language 
when  they  meet. 

In  the  language  of  the  Indians  of  Upper  Ukiah,  Redwood 
and  Potter  Valleys,  the  word  Porno  means  "people,"  while  in 
the  northern  Lake  county  Napo  has  the  same  meaning.  Thus 
in  the  tongue  of  the  former  the  Potter  Valley  Indians  are  the 
Ballo  Kai  Porno,  or  Oat  Valley  People;  those  of  *Ukiah,  Yokaia 
Porno,  or  South  Valley  People;  the  lake  tribes,  tShoke  Porno  or 
Lake  People.  Similarly  in  Lake  county,  the  tribes  on  the  hilly 
edge  of  Big-  Valley  were  Kabenapo  or  Rock  People.  Those  who 

*Each  of  the  tribes  living  in  Ukiah  Valley  now  claim  the  name  Yokaia. 
tShoke  means  East  Water. 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS.  9 

lived  down  by  the  waters  of  Clear  Lake  were  Talanapo  or  Pond 
Lily  People,  and  that  tribe  which  lived  in  the  bushy  region  along 
Cache  Creek  were  Khainapo  or  Wood  People,  etc.  As  will  be 
seen  all  tribal  names  were  descriptive  with  the  suffix  People. 

Properly  speaking-,  therefore,  there  is  no  such  a  tribe  as  the 
Pomos. 

The  name  *Pomo  was  first  used  by  Mr.  Stephen  Powers,  whose 
studies  of  the  California  Indians  from  1873  to  1876  were  em 
bodied  in  a  most  interesting  volume  of  the  United  States  Gov 
ernment  Reports  in  1876.  Mr.  Powers's  use  of  the  word  was 
in  designating  a  linguistic  group  rather  than  a  tribe  proper,  and 
in  that  sense  it  is  now  accepted  by  the  best  authorities. 

The  customs,  arts  and  physiognomies  of  all  of  the  tribes  I 
have  mentioned  are  very  similar,  and  while  there  is  much  differ 
ence  in  language  there  is  sufficient  likeness  to  make  it  certain 
that  all  were  derived  from  the  same  stock.  The  name  Porno  in 
this  sense  is  as  good  as  any  other,  and  is  generally  accepted, 
while  all  of  their  baskets  are  called  Pomos. 

The  Indian  words  for  weaves  and  classes  of  Porno  baskets 
which  are  in  use  among  many  collectors  are  from  the  dialect 
of  the  Upper  Yokai,  Calpella  and  Potter  Valley  tribes 
(which  are  closely  related).  Among  the  other  tribes  altogether 
different  words  are  used.  Thus  the  word  basket  in  Potter  is 
"pi-ka",  at  Upper  Lake  "si-tol",  at  Lower  Lake  "ko-lob," 
at  Cache  Creek  "  ka-wah."  Throughout  this  article  all  Indians 
words  are  from  the  Potter  Valley  Porno  unless  otherwise  stated. 
Doctor  Hudson's  writings  have  made  the  basket  collectors  more 
or  less  familiar  with  these  words,  and  there  could  be  no  pos 
sible  excuse  for  changing.  The  spelling  used  is  that  recom 
mended  by  the  Smithsonian  Institution.  The  arts,  customs  and 
legends  of  the  Pomos  are  peculiarly  interesting,  and  a  most 
readable  volume  could  be  written  with  them  as  a  subject.  In 
the  space  at  my  command  I  can  only  give  a  suggestion  of  the 
wealth  of  material. 

Each  little  tribe  was  an  independent  nation  as  to  government, 
and  few  alliances  were  formed  with  their  neighbors.  The  fact 
that  distinct  dialects  were  maintained  at  opposite  ends  of  a  small 
valley  is  sufficient  proof  that  there  was  little  intermarriage. 

Until  long  after  the  white  man  came,  their  winter  homes 
were  domes  of  wickerwork,  thatched  heavily  with  grass  or 
tules,  and  the  older  people  still  build  such  homes.  The  beauti 
ful  photograph  on  page  8  is  of  such  a  house  still  standing  in 
good  preservation  in  the  center  of  Big  Valley,  Lake  county, 
and  was  taken  this  spring.  It  so  perfectly  shows  the  manner 

*The  rule  is  that  the  first  writer  who  uses  a  word  from  a  savage  race  as  a  tribal  desig-na- 
tion,  fixes  the  spelling-.     1  therefore  use  "  Porno"  rather  than  "  Poma  "  . 


POMO  'INDIAN    BASKETS. 


11 


POMO   "SHI-BUS.' 


{Plate.  4\ 


of  construction  as  to  make  description  unnecessary.  In  such 
a  house  three  generations  of  a  family  lived  and  stored  their 
food.  The  center  was  occupied  by  open  fires,  the  smoke  find 
ing"  vent  through  a  hole  in  the  roof.  Great  storage  baskets 
filled  with  acorns  were  stacked  on  the  sides,  fish  hung  on 
strings  on  the  walls,  and  the  whole  family  life  went  on  with 
in.  The  summer  house  was  also  of  wicker  work  covered  with 
boughs,  and  the  tribe  often  moved  several  times  a  year,  as 
acorns,  fish  or  game,  or  dry  quarters  were  the  desiderata. 

Their  women  carried  great  loads  in  the  conical  baskets,  sus 
pended  in  a  net  which  had  a  broad  band  which  passed  across 
the  forehead.  When  the  woman  bent  forward  the  weight 
rested  on  the  back  and  was  steadied  by  the  head.  A  great 
variety  of  seeds,  bulbs  and  roots  were  used  for  food.  The 
soap  root,  **  Chlorogalum, "  was  used  for  laundry  purposes,  and 
also  was  beaten  into  a  pulp  and  placed  in  streams  and  pools  to 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS.  13 

stupefy  the  fish.  The  great  food  staple  of  the  Porno  tribes 
was  the  acorn  ;  this,  the  great  number  of  oaks  of  various  sorts, 
which  are  such  a  scenic  feature  in  the  region  they  inhabit, 
furnished  in  abundance.  Each  winter  village  contained  the 
sweat-house,  an  institution  inseparable  from  their  social  and 
religious  life.  It  was  a  circular  excavation  roofed  with  timbers 
to  form  a  cone  and  covered  with  soil.  The  largest  were 
thirty  or  forty  feet  across.  In  it  their  dances  and  other  assem 
blages  were  held.  The  building  portrayed  on  page  445  is  a  mod 
ernized  adaptation  of  the  plan.  Pew  of  the  old-style  sweat- 
houses  are  now  to  be  found. 

Their  dances  were  of  a  medical  or  religious  character,  and 
the  costumes  and  chants  varied  according  to  the  occasion.  I 
well  remember  a  great  dance  which  occurred  in  1873.  At  the 
rancheria  five  miles  south  of  Ukiah  an  immense  sweat  house 
was  built,  and  the  Indians  gathered  there  from  far  and  near. 
For  weeks  dances  took  place  day  and  night ;  the  big  building 
was  crowded  with  savage  faces  ;  the  dancers,  in  the  middle, 
naked  except  for  a  feathered  skirt  about  the  waist  and  hid 
eously  painted,  the  barbaric  musical  accompaniment  and  the 
chants,  now  low  and  then  rising  to  cries  which  could  be  heard 
for  miles,  made  a  scene  to  impress  itself  indelibly  on  the  mind 
of  the  white  onlooker.  Dances  still  take  place  occasional^7,  and 
the  costumes  in  the  accompanying  photographs  are  essentially 
the  ancient  ones,  plus  some  extra  clothing. 

When  a  death  occurred,  the  body,  together  with  the  most 
precious  effects  of  the  deceased  and  presents  from  friends, 
was  burned.  The  house  in  which  a  death  occurred  was  also 
burned.  Cremation  continued  to  be  practiced  until  the  late 
'Seventies,  and  then  gradually  gave  way  to  burial.  They  still 
burn  or  bury  valuable  articles  with  the  deceased.  The  house 
is  not  now  burned,  but  is  almost  always  torn,  down  and  moved. 
This  custom  accounts  for  the  very  poor  dwellings  among  the 
Indians,  as  compared  with  their  quite  valuable  belongings  of 
other  sorts.  The  entire  tribe  joined  in  the  cremation  of  the  de 
ceased,  and  the  wild  wails  could  be  heard  for  miles.  The  near 
relatives  mourned  for  a  long  period,  using  what  sounds  like  a  set 
formula  of  wails  and  cries  repeated  again  and  again. 

They  were  inveterate  gamblers.  Their  favorite  game  of 
chance  was  the  grass  game,  and  on  it  they  risked  every 
worldly  possession.  From  Bodega  Bay  they  secured  clam  shells 
from  which  they  chipped  white  bits.  These  were  first  drilled, 
and  then,  by  a  laborious  process,  reduced  to  circular  disks  of 
different  sizes.  This  was  Indian  money,  or  'kkaia,"and  was 
strung  according  to  sue.  It  was  and  still  is  common  currency 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS.  15 

among-  not  only  the  Porno  tribes  but  their  Indian  neig-hbors. 
Many  thousands  of  pieces  are  coined  yearly,  and  the  Indian 
money-maker  is  a  familiar  sight  in  every  rancheria.  Their 
currency  was,  if  I  may  use  the  word,  bimetallic.  Nodules  of 
mag'nesite  were  mined  at  a  point  on  Cache  creek,  about  five 
miles  from  Clear  Lake.  When  subjected  to  a  slow  baking- 
process  colors  something  like  agate  were  developed.  It  was 
then  shaped  into  cylinders  one  to  three  inches  long-,  and  strung 
as  "  kaia  "  was. 

Unless  the  student  is  thoroug-hly  conversant  with  an  Indian 
language,  it  is  ver}^  difficult  to  learn  their  myths  and  leg-ends 
in  a  way  that  is  reliable.  We  have  a  sufficient  glimpse  at 


A  CACHE  CREEK  "MAN-BASKET."  [Plate  6] 

those  of  the  Pomos  to  know  that  they  were  very  interesting, 
as  were  their  religious  beliefs. 

Physically  the  Pomos  were  rather  fine  specimens.  Especially 
was  this  true  about  Clear  Lake.  Many  of  the  men  were  six 
feet  high,  of  powerful  build,  and  weighing-  one  hundred  and 
eighty  to  two  hundred  and  twenty  pounds.  The  women  were 
short  and  very  broad.  Probably  the  heavy  loads  they  carried 
from  childhood  up  had  something-  to  do  with  this. 

Interesting  as  the  customs  of  the  Pomos  are,  they  would 
hardly  have  been  heard  of  away  from  the  region  they  inhabit 
were  it  not  that  as  basket  makers  they  are  wonderfully  pro 
ficient. 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


17 


Into  the  life  of  a  Porno,  baskets  entered  every  day  from  his 
birth  to  his  death.  He  was  cradled  in  a  papoose  basket,  and 
in  it,  hung-  by  a  broad  band  on  his  mother's  brow,  he  made  his 
early  journeys.  His  home  was  a  great  thatched  basket,  his 
toys  were  baskets  modeled  after  the  large  ones  that  he  saw. 
He  ate  from  a  "da-la,"  or  flat  basket,  and  drank  from 
a  round  "tci-ma."  The  seeds  from  which  his  meal  was 
made  were  ground  in  a  "mu-tci,"  or  mortar  basket,  and 
his  fish  and  meat  were  cooked  in  large  mush  bowls  or  "tci- 
mas,"  and  a  large  "  tci-ma "  was  his  water-bucket.  His  fish 


RED-BUD  OR  "MILLE." 

was  caught  in  a  "  baiyat-au"  or  fish-net  basket,  his  meal  was 
winnowed  in  winnowing  baskets  and  screened  in  a  "  pa-se  "  or 
sieve  basket.  When  he  traveled,  his  belongings  were  carried  in 
a  "bu-gi,"  the  conical  burden  basket,  and  these  answered  for 
every  purpose  for  which  we  use  a  wheelbarrow  or  wagon.  If 
he  gardened,  his  fences  were  of  wickerware,  and  he  trapped  birds 
and  game  in  long  cylindrical  baskets.  On  Clear  Lake  the  art 
of  basketry  applied  to  tules  was  used  in  making-  canoes. 

Was  it  wonderful,  then,  that  a  people  to  whom  baskets  were 
so  much  should  have  exhausted  their  ingenuity  in  weaves  and 
shapes,  interwoven  their  mythology  and  superstition  in  the 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS  19 

meshes,  copied  nature  in  the  designs,  and  lavished  the  richest 
treasures  of  the  chase,  tog-ether  with  their  precious  money 
and  the  brightest  abalone  shells  from  the  distant  sea  shore,  on 
those  gift-baskets  which  marked  the  culmination  of  their  art  ? 

Such  baskets  were  the  pride  of  the  owner  and  the  envy 
of  his  friends  ;  they  were  given  to  visitors,  or  on  wedding's,  as 
the  highest  possible  token  of  esteem.  A  woman  who  was  par 
ticularly  adept  in  their  making  had  more  than  a  local  fame ;  and 
when  their  lucky  possessor  died  his  priceless  baskets  were  placed 
on  the  funeral  pyre  to  accompany,  as  they  fancied,  his  soul  to 
the  other  world. 

In  basketry  the  Pomos  found  an  outlet  for  the  hig-hest  con 
ceptions  of  art  that  their  race  was  capable  of.  Protected  by 
their  isolation  from  other  tribes,  they  worked  out  their  ideas  un 
disturbed.  With  every  incentive  for  excellence  they  had  reached 
a  height  in  basketry  when  the  American  first  disturbed  them 
which  has  never  been  equaled — not  only  by  no  other  Indian  tribe 
but  by  no  other  people  in  the  world  in  any  age. 

These  stolid  Indian  women  have  a  knowledge  of  materials 
and  their  preparation,  a  delicacy  of  touch,  an  artistic  conception 
of  symmetry  of  form  and  design,  a  versatility  in  varying-  and 
inventing-  beautiful  designs,  and  an  eye  for  color  which  place 
their  work  on  a  high  plane  of  art.  They  alone,  of  all  races, 
adorn  their  baskets  with  feathers. 

It  was  long  before  civilized  people  came  to  a  realization  of 
the  beauty  of  the  Indian  baskets,  and  it  was  only  about  eig-hteen 
years  ago  that  collectors  began  to  seek  them.  The  history  of 
what  some  would  call  "the  basket  fad"  is  one  of  rapidly  grow 
ing-  interest,  and  at  the  beginning  of  the  twentieth  century 
prices  are  willingly  paid  for  the  finest  creations  of  fiber  and 
feathers  which  seem  fabulous  when  compared  to  those  of  a  few 
years  ago  ;  yet  which  are  not  an  overpayment  for  the  skill  and 
indefatigable  patience  shown  in  their  manufacture.  Such 
baskets  will  never  be  cheaper,  but  will  rather  appreciate  in 
value  as  a  greater  number  of  people  of  taste  and  means  come  to 
observe  their  beauty  and  seek  the  best. 

Before  beginning  to  describe  the  materials  used  in  Porno 
basketry,  and  the  shapes,  uses  and  desig-ns  of  the  baskets,  I 
would  emphasize  the  fact  that  by  Porno  baskets  I  mean  the 
baskets  of  all  of  the  thirty  or  more  tribes  grouped  by  Mr.  Powers 
under  that  name  ;  while  all  of  the  words  which  I  use  are  from 
the  dialect  of  the  Ballo  Kai  Porno  of  Potter  Valley,  Mendocino 
county; 

.  The  Porno  of  today  lives  in  the  valleys  occupied  by  his  an 
cestors,  on  lands  purchased  by  his  tribe  or  occupied  by  the  per- 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS.  21 

mission  of  some  white  friend.  He  has  his  mission  school  and 
his  church,  owns  a  horse  and  wagon  and  often  a  buggy,  dresses 
like  a  "dude"  in  civilized  garb  on  gala  days,  lives  in  a  cabin 
often  neatly  built,  and  has  chickens  and  a  garden.  He  works 
industriously  as  a  day  laborer,  and  often  takes  a  contract  to  care 
for  a  crop  for  his  white  neighbors.  A  ride  on  the  railroad  is 
not  a  novelty  to  him.  If  he  is  young  he  often  has  white  blood 
in  his  veins,  and  shows  it.  He  is  cheerful  and  happy,  and  by  no 
means  improvident.  There  are  no  "Ramonas"  or  "Alessan- 
dros"  in  his  village,  but  occasionally  one  who  has  been  sent  to 
the  Indian  training  schools  in  Nevada  or  Oregon.  By  the  side 
of  a  neat  cabin  can  be  seen  a  house  on  the  old  model  where  his 
old  mother  and  father  live  as  their  ancestors  did,  surrounded  by 
all  the  aboriginal  implements  and  devices.  They  are  used  to 
the  new  civilization,  but  prefer  the  old  "savagery."  They  weave 
from  the  native  fibers,  and  seek  bulbs  and  plants  still  for  food. 
Their  daily  bread  is  of  acorns  ground  in  a  "mu-gi."  If  their 
sons  and  daughters  prefer  the  white  doctor,  the  medicine  man 
is  good  enough  for  them. 

The  veneer  of  civilization  is  thin,  and  at  times  all  throw 
aside  its  garb  and  in  scant  feathered  skirts  join  in  the  barbaric 
dances  and  sing  the  weird  songs  of  long  ago. 

BASKET  MATERIALS. 

All  Porno  baskets  are  woven  on  a  framework  of  slender  willow 
shoots.  Except  for  the  coarsest  "shakans,"  these  shoots  are 
peeled  and  cured  carefully.  The  Pomos  call  them  "bam"  and 
from  them  several  baskets  are  named  as  "bam-tush"*  and  "bam- 
shibu.t"  The  willow  tree  is  called  "bam-kalle"  or  "  bam  tree." 

The  bams  are  the  framework  ;  the  thread  is  obtained  from  the 
bark  of  shrubs  and  the  roots  of  trees  and  grasses.  The  most 
important  of  these  fibers  is  "ka-hum,"  which  is  the  root  of  a 
sedge  (Carex  Mendocinoensis),  which  grows  in  deep,  moist  soil 
in  most  sections  of  the  Porno  country.  This  sedge  has  long, 
slender,  grassy  leaves  and  a  very  long  running  root  which  is 
quite  tough.  The  Indian  women  split  these  roots  with  their 
teeth  and  coil  them  in  bundles  which  are  dried  ready  for  use. 

When  cured,  "ka-hum"  is  of  a  light  cream  color,  but  deepens 
with  age  into  the  rich,  creamy  brown  so  much  admired  in  old 
Porno  baskets. 

Rarest  and  most  valuable  of  all  Porno  basket  fibers  is  "  Tsu- 
wish,"  the  root  of  a  Scirpus  (S.  Maritima),  a  grass-like  plant 
growing  among  the  tules  on  the  border  of  marshy  lands.  When 
fresh,  the  root  is  a  dark  brown.  The  color  is  usually  deepened 

* ''Bam-tush"  means  evenly  woven,     t  "Bam-shibu,"  or  usually  "shibu,"  is  a  corruption 
of  "  bom-sibbu"  or  three  bams. 


22 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


A  GOOD  "Ti."     PLYMPTON  COLLECTION. 


[Plate  io\ 


by  placing  it  in  a  mixture  of  mud,  ashes  and  charcoal  for  a 
period  of  from  one  to  three  days.  The  best  is  then  nearly  black. 
The  deeper  the  col 
or  the  more  prized 
the  tsu-wish.  As 
the  color  is  in  the 
outer  covering-  of  the 
root  only,  it  has  to 
be  split  according^. 
The  common  brake, 
Pteris  aquilina,  a 
fern  widely  scattered 
throughout  the  north 
temperate  zone,  has 
a  long  running  root. 
In  this  root  certain 
black  fibers  are  em 
bedded  in  a  white 
cellular  structure.  These  the  Pomos  call  "bis"  and  where 
tsu-wish  is  less  common,  as  along  the  coast  region,  it  is  used 
for  a  dark  thread.  I  found  the  Washoes  of  Nevada  using  the 
same  fiber.  The  best  basket-making  Porno  tribes  never  em 
ploy  it. 

I  have  never  known  a  Porno  to  use  the  maiden-hair  fern  stems, 
so  commonly  used  from  Humbolt  county  north. 

The  rich,  reddish  brown  in  the  coarser  Porno  baskets  is  the 
bark  of  the  "red-bud,"  Cercis  occidentalis.  The  red-bud  is  a 
handsome  shrub  with  large  leaves,  rather  suggestive  of  the 
grape  ;  and  in  the  spring,  before  the  leaves  are  developed,  the 
shrubs  are  solid  masses  of  bloom.  The  flowers  are  like  those  of 
a  pea  and  are  magenta  in  color.  Red-bud  is  very  common 
throughout  eastern  Mendocino  and  all  Lake  county.  The  split, 
peeled  stems  are  also  used  as  basket  fiber.  The  Porno  name  is 
"Mille."  Other  reddish  brown  barks  may  be  used  where  Mille 
cannot  be  had,  but  the  first  instance  of  their  employment  has 
yet  to  come  to  my  knowledge.  The  red-bud  bark  is  stripped  in 
long  bands  and  coiled  to  dr}T. 

The  staple  fiber  for  the  lighter  color  in  coarse  baskets  is 
obtained  by  digging  the  roots  of  the  digger  pine,  (P.  Sabinana), 
and  tearing  them  into  long  strips.  These  are  of  rich  creamy 
tint,  exceedingly  tough  and  pliable  and  rich  in  pitch,  and  are 
an  ideal  basket  fiber.  The  Porno  name  is  "ka-li-she."  Where 
the  digger  pine  is  not  found,  the  roots  of  other  pines  or  Douglas 
spruce  may  be  substituted,  but  these  are  not  as  good. 

"Ka-hum,"     "Tsu-wish,"    "Mille"    and    "Ka-li-she,"    for 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS.  23 

threads,  with  willow  "bams"  for  framework,  are  practically  the 
only  materials  used  in  Porno  baskets.  Each  is  collected  at  the 
proper  time,  and  (except  the  bams)  coiled  and  hung  up  to  dry. 
The  smoke  and  dust  of  the  house  begin  the  process  of  deepening 
and  enriching  the  color  before  the  material  finds  its  way  into 
the  baskets. 

Given  these  materials,  a  small,  very  sharp  knife,  an  awl,  and 
a  dish  to  hold  the  water  in  which  the  fiber  is  kept  soaking  to 
render  it  pliable  as  used,  and  the  Indian  woman  is  ready  for 
work.  The  knife  was  formerly  of  obsidian  or  "bottle  rock," 
fastened  to  a  handle  with  sinew,  and  the  awl  a  small  bone  from 
the  deer's  leg. 

The  Pomos  ornament  their  finer  baskets  with  "kaia"  or 
Indian  money,  polished  bits  of  abalone  shells,  and  with  various 
bird  feathers.  At  an  early  date  beads  were  sold  to  them  by 
traders,  and  very  naturally  found  a  use  in  basket  ornamentation. 
The  favorite  feathers  are  taken  from  the  red  head  and  yellow 
throat  of  the  redheaded  woodpecker  and  the  green  head  of  the 
mallard  duck.  The  plumes  of  the  male  valley  quail  are  also 
held  in  high  esteem.  The  brilliant  feathers  of  any  bird  are  used 
effectively  in  decoration. 

ON  WEAVES. — It  must  always  be  remembered  that  the  Indian 
basket  is  not  plaited,  as  are  those  of  most  races,  but  woven.  The 
willow  bams  are  the  warp,  the  thread  the  woof.  The  Pomos 
have  in  common  use  six  distinct  methods  of  weaving,  and  several 
more  are  more  rarely  seen. 

SOFT  WEAVES. 

Of  the  six  common  weaves,  four  are  soft,  two  hard.  In  the 
soft  weaves  the  warp  or  framework  is  of  slender  bam  ribs 
ascending  from  a  common  center  at  the  base  like  the  spokes  of  a 
wheel.  The  coarsest  of  these  is  the  sha-kan,  literally 
"fish  basket."  This  is  an  open  wickerware  basket.  The 
ascending  ribs  are  from  a  half  inch  to  two  inches  apart. 
These  are  crossed  at  similar  intervals  by  two  similar  willow 
bams  which  take  a  single  or  double  twist  around  each  other  in 
each  space.  The  sha-kan  weave  is  the  nearest  approach  to 
European  wicker-work  found  among  the  Pomos,  and  is  much 
used.  Baskets  of  this  weave  may  be  placques,  round  bowls,  or 
tall  storage  baskets.  Often  conical  burden-baskets  are  so 
woven.  The  quaint  fish-traps  and  long  quail-traps  are  made  in 
this  weave,  as  were  the  wicker-work  fences  and  frame  work  for 
the  old  thatched  houses.  These  are  the  only  baskets  made  by 
the  men.  More  of  ten,,  willow  bams  were  unpeeled  in  sha-kans, 
but  in  the  finer  baskets  peeled  willows  are  used  and  quite  a 
pretty  basket  produced. 


24  rOMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 

In  this  weave  the  ribs  are  of  slender  peeled  bams  as 
cending  close  together.  The  woof  is  of  two  threads 
passing-  alternately  over  and  under  the  ribs  and  taking-  a 
half  turn  on  each  other  in  the  spaces.  At  frequent  intervals 
the  last  courses  are  pressed  closely  upon  the  preceding-  ones. 
The  threads  used  are  split  evenly  but  are  not  usually  trimmed. 
The  two  threads,  which  on  casual  inspection,  seem  to  g-o  around 
the  basket,  really  form  a  spiral,  beginning  at  the  base  and  ter 
minating  at  the  top  of  the  basket.  When  making  such  a 
basket  the  Indian  woman  prepares  a  number  of  threads  and 
weaves  rapidly.  To  work  the  design  she  oftener  turns  the  mille 
thread  over,  as  it  is  white  on  one  side.  Of  course  as  the  basket 
widens,  the  spoke-like  ribs  get  farther  apart,  and  whenever  the 
space  permits,  an  additional  bam  is  sharpened  and  inserted.  If  at 
the  top  the  basket  is  narrowed,  this  process  is  reversed  and  some 
of  the  ribs  are  cut  out. 

As  the  threads  of  the  woof  are  used  up,  new  ones  are  inserted, 
and  the  loose  end  is  always  left  on  the  inside.  When  completed, 
these  loose  threads  are  shaved  off  so  neatly  as  to  leave  hardly  a 
trace  of  their  insertion,  while  the  ribs  are  cut  off  evenly.  The 
Porno  never  puts  a  terminal  binding  on  such  baskets.  A  basket 
before  it  is  trimmed  makes  a  very  interesting  exhibit  of  Indian 
methods  of  .construction. 

When  weaving,  the  woman  sits  flat  on  the  ground,  often  hold 
ing  some  of  the  bams  firmly  with  her  toes  to  stead}7  the  basket 
while  she  works. 

The  usual  materials  used  for  the  *'  bam-tush  "  are  red-bud 
for  designs,  "ka-li-she"  for  light  ground,  and  willow  bams. 
In  fine  pieces  "ka-hum"  is  used  for  the  light  ground,  and  the 
threads  carefully  evened  with  the  knife.  A  well  made  basket 
in  the  "  bam-tush  "  weave  is  water-tight  and  very  strong.  It  is 
the  most  useful  of  all  Porno  weaves.  Shallow  plaques,  mush 
bowls,  mortar  baskets,  cooking  baskets,  burden  baskets  and  large 
storage  baskets  are  oftenest  in  this  weave.  While  baskets  for  use, 
they  are  often  ornamented  with  beautiful  designs  carried  out  in 
"mille."  These  designs  are  almost  always  in  circular  bands; 
very  seldom  in  spirals,  as  is  usual  in  the  next  weave. 

"CHU-SBT."  This  is  lighter  in  construction  but  very  similar  to  the 

("TCU-SBT").  "  bam-tush."     The  bams  of  the  frame  work  are  handled 

exactly  the  same,  but  the  threads  of  the  woof  used,  which 
alternately  pass  over  two,  and  then  under  two,  ribs  at  a  time. 
This  method  gives  the  "  chu-sSt"  a  much  smoother  outer  sur 
face  than  the  "  bam-tush"  and  seems  to  make  ornamentation 
easier.  Bowls  and  conical  burden-baskets,  and  very  rarely 
placques,  are  made  in  this  weave,  and  are  ornamented  with  most 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS.  25 

beautiful  spiral  designs.  I  consider  a  fine  "  elm-set"  the  most 
beautiful  product  of  Porno  art.  In  working-  out  the  design  the 
red-bud  is  thinner  than  the  light  material,  and  so  the  design 
shows  in  relief  on  the  'inside  of  the  basket. 

In  this  weave  the  basket  is  started  as  the  "bam-tush" 

"  Tl." 

is.  A  short  distance  up,  a  bam  is  laid  at  right  angles 
to  the  ascending  ribs,  and  the  thread  of  the  woof  is 
whipped  over  this  stick,  then  between  the  ascending  bams. 
The  bams  are  added  exactly  as  in  the  "  bam-tush,"  and  as  a  "ti" 
stick  is  covered  it  is  pieced  out  in  a  spiral  ending  at  the  top  of 
the  basket.  When  completed,  the  basket  appears  as  a  bam- 
tush"  inside  and  shows  a  spiral  outside. 

It  would  seem  very  difficult,  indeed,  to  work  out  a  really  pretty, 
design  in  such  a  weave,  but  a  skillful  worker  will  execute  a  very 
beautiful  design,  nevertheless.  The  effects  are  particularly  soft 
and  a  fine  "  ti"  is  highly  prized  by  both  Indian  and  collector. 
Bowls,  placques,  mortar  baskets  and  storage  baskets  are  made 
in  this  weave,  and  in  very  many  placques  or  mortar  baskets  in 
the  "bam-tush"  weave  a  few  courses  in  the  "  ti"  are  thrown  in 
to  give  stiffness.  The  light  thread  is  '  'ka-hum, "  the  red  '  'mille. " 

This  is  more  properly    an  ornamental  stitch.       It  is 

SHAT-SIN  " 

used  on  "bam-tush"  baskets  by  substituting  two  sets  of 
three    threads    each.      The    result   is   a    very    pretty     corded 
appearance.     It  is  rarely  used,  and  a  complete  basket  in  it  is 
rarer  yet.     No  design  can  be  worked  in  it,  but  as  a  course-band 
on  a       bam-tush"  it  is  decidedly  effective. 

This  ends  the  list  of  the  "soft  weaves,"  and  we  may  now  con 
sider  the 

HARD    WEAVES. 

In  the  "Tsai"  weave  a  single  stick  is  coiled.  The 
thread  passes  through  an  awl-hole  between  the  alter 
nate  stitches  below  the  preceding  coil,  then  over  both  preced 
ing  coil  and  the  loose  stick  above.  Thus  each  stitch  altern 
ates  with  the  stitches  above  and  below.  In  this  way,  beginning 
at  the  knob  in  the  center  of  the  base  of  the  basket,  coil  after 
coil  is  built  up  until  the  end  of  the  stick  is  sloped  and  neatly 
bound  down  on  the  upper  margin.  On  each  round  one-half 
of  the  stitches  are  plainly  in  sight  and  one-half  partly  con 
cealed.  The  "Tsai"  is  otherwise  known  as  a  "one-stick" 
basket. 

The  "  Shi-bu"  differs  from  the  "  one-stick"  basket  in 
having  three  sticks  bound  in  a  bundle  for  its  framework. 
The  thread  passes  through  an   awl-hole  made  in  the  upper  edge 
of  the  coil  just  below.     As  each  of  the  sticks  runs  out  a  new 
one   is   added.      On   a   well-worked    "three-stick"   basket    the 


26  POMO    INDIAN   BASKETS. 

threads  are  all  opposite,  and  completely  cover  the  framework. 
Placques  and  any  modification  of  the  bowl,  canoe  or  basin,  are 
made  in  these  two  hard  weaves,  and  they  are  the  only  weaves 
upon  which  feathers  or  other  ornaments  can  be  used  to  advan 
tage.  The  "  Shi-bu"  is  most  highly  esteemed  by  the  Indians. 
and  in  it  they  can  carry  out  the  most  intricate  patterns,  both  in 
the  fiber  itself  and  in  the  beads  or  feathers  with  which  it  is 
ornamented.  The  most  indefatigable  patience  is  required  in 
the  manufacture  of  these  baskets,  as  for  each  stitch  an  awl-hole 
must  be  made  and  the  sharpened  end  of  the  fiber  threaded 
through.  The  thread  is  shaved  down  to  such  perfect  evenness 
that  the  eye  can  scarcely  detect  the  shadow  of  a  variation  in  its 
thickness.  As  the  basket  is  woven,  beginning  at  the  bottom, 
the  design  is  worked  from  the  bottom  upward.  In  working  the 
design  the  fiber  is  cut  and  a  new  piece  inserted  at  every  change 
in  color.  In  feather  work  each  feather  is  plucked  from  the  pre 
pared  skin  of  the  bird,  and  neatly  caught  in  a  stitch,  which  is 
then  pulled  so  tightly  that  the  feather  cannot  be  detached  ex 
by  breaking  it  off.  When  "kaia"  is  used,  a  thread  is  carried 
along  under  the  woof  and  the  **  kaia"  threaded  on  as  needed. 
Beads  are  usually  put  on  in  the  same  way,  but  on  some  beauti 
fully  beaded  baskets  the  beads  are  strung  on  the  woof  itself. 


THE  GARTER  SNAKE  DESIGN  ix  POMO  BASKETS. 


.' 


POMO     /.Y/>/./.Y      //./.SAY    /.s. 


27 


KA-SHAI-SHAI  LIDO  (THE  BUTTBKHLY). 


I /'/,//,  /.I 


Feathers  are  used  in  two  ways  on  baskets  by  the 
Pomos.  In  the  first  way,  they  are  secondary  to  the  de 
sign,  and  only  give  a  bit  of  color  or  a  finishing  touch  to  a 
basket  with  a  pretty  design.  For  this  purpose  the  quail  plume 
and  the  red  feathers  from  the  woodpecker's  head  are  almost  the 
only  ones  used.  The  red  feathers  are  oftener  placed  regularly 
but  thinly  on  the  lighter-colored  fiber  on  the  upper  half  of  the 
basket,  and  the  quail  plumes  scattered,  or  below  three  crests  of 
M  kaia"  on  the  upper  edge  of  the  basket.  These  the  Indians  do 
not  consider  feathered  baskets  at  all. 

In  the  feathered  basket  proper,  there  is  little  or  no  design  in 
the  fiber,  and  the  basket  is  closely  covered  with  feathers.  The 
Indians  divide  fully-feathered  baskets  into  two  classes,  the 
"ta-pi-ca"  and  the  "e-pi-ca."  The  "ta-pi-ca"  (literally 
KI:P  KASKKT)  is  what  is  known  among  basket  collectors  and 
dealers  as  the  "SUN"  basket.  The  name  sun  basket  is,  I  sup 
pose,  owing  to  a  misinterpretation  of  the  Indian  word.  In 
Porno  "da"  is  sun,  "ta"  is  red.  I  have  asked  the  name  of 
this  basket  fully  a  hundred  times,  of  as  many  Indians,  and  in 
all  parts  of  the  Indian  country,  and  the  name  and  interpretation 
are  uniform,  allowing  for  dialect,  "ta-pi-ca,"  "  ta-si-tol," 
44  tan-kolob,"  all  mean  "red  basket,"  with  a  sometimes  secon 
dary  moan  ing  of  "  pretty  basket" 


FEATHERED 

TA-1'I-CA, 


28 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


BUTTERFLY    REPEATED. 


[Plate  /.?] 


Informer  days,  the  "ta-pi-ca,"  or  "red  basket,"  was  always 
made  in  one  pattern,  shown  in  the  oldest  specimens,  i.e.,  a 
saucer-shaped  basket  closely  covered  with  the  red  feathers,  pro 
fusely  decorated  with  pendants  of  "kaia"  and  abalone,  with  a 
close  circle  of  "  kaia"  around  the  top,  surmounting  another  close 
circle  of  quail  plumes,  and  often  with  a  string-  of  "kaia."  This, 
then,  is  the  original  "  ta-pi-ca";  but  for  some  years  past  it  has 
been  beautifully  varied  by  using  the  red  feathers  for  a  ground 
color  and  working  in  a  design  in  other  colors.  More  rarely  other 
feathers  than  the  red  are  used  for  a  groundwork.  The  use  of 
any  other  than  red  feathers  is  an  innovation,  though  a  charm 
ing  one. 

The  Indian  (Ballo  Kai  Porno)  name  for  a  feathered  basket  of 
any  other  shape  than  the  one  described  is  "e-pi-ca,"  or 
"  feathered  basket,"  and  this  whether  the  red  feathers  and  the 
pendants  are  used  or  not. 

I  have  still  to  meet  an  Indian  who  knew  of  such  a  thing  as  a 
"  moon  basket";  and  I  repeat  and  emphasize  the  statement  that 
I  have  never  met  an  Indian  who  knew  of  or  used  the  terms 
"sun"  or  "moon  basket."  There  is  no  serious  objection  to 
their  use  by  basket  collectors  or  dealers,  but  the  names  are  not 
Indian. 

The  "  ta-pi-ca"  is  most  highly  prized  by  the  Indian.     A  fine 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


29 


specimen  takes  months,  or  even  years,  of  the  most  patient  and 
painstaking  work  of  the  woman,  and  long:  hunts  by  her  man. 
Thirty  to  fifty  feathers  to  every  lineal  inch  are  placed  so  per 
fectly  that  the  surface  of  the  completed  work  is  like  red  plush, 
and  exquisitely  perfect.  I  saw  one  which  required  two  hundred 
and  forty  quail  plumes  as  a  finishing-  touch,  and  was  fully  two 
years  under  way. 

The  real  acme  of  Porno  art  is  not,  however,  in  these  beautiful 
but  barbaric  feathered  baskets,  but  rather  in  the  "chuset," 
"  tsai"  and  "  shi-bu"  bowls  and  canoes  which  combine  so  per 
fectly  symmetry  of  form,  soft  coloring's,  and  intricate  designs- 
perfect  works  of  art  from  whichever  point  of  view. 

Perhaps  the  most  interesting-  phase  of  the  study  of  Indian 
basketry  is  that  of  the  names  and  meaning  of  the  designs 
with  which  the  baskets  are  ornamented. 

Next  to  a  study  of  Indian  myths  and  legends,  this  study  re 
quires  a  knowledge  of  their  lang-uage,  at  least  of  a  g-ood  num 
ber  of  nouns.  If  this  knowledge  extends  to  several  dialects,  the 
results  obtained  are  much  better,  for  if  under  such  circumstances 
the  facts  obtained  are  corroborative  they  are  thereby-  proved 
be}rond  reasonable  doubt. 

During-  the  last  three  years  I  have  made  this  branch  of  Porno 
basketry  a  particular  study.  I  have  a  greater  or  less  knowl- 


CHI-KA-KA  KAYA  (QUAIL  PLUME). 


[Plate  i4\ 


30 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


edge  of  five  dialects  and  a  smattering  of  several  others.  When 
ever  opportunity  offers  I  propound  the  question  in  regard  to  any 
basket  at  hand  :  tkWhat  is  this  design  ?"  in  the  dialect  of  the 
person  addressed.  In  this  way,  giving  them  no  clue  whatever 
to  my  previous  knowledge,  I  have  had  the  names  of  some  de 
signs  dozens,  if  not  hundreds,  of  times,  from  individuals  separ 
ated  by  both  distance  and  language. 

In  some  cases  every  witness  agrees  ;  in  others,  the  great  ma 
jority.  The  field  is  a  wide  one,  and  I  have  by  no  means  ex 
hausted  it  ;  but  as  to  some  I  feel  I  can  speak  with  the  weight  of 
evidence  strongly  in  my  favor. 

Whether  the  Porno  woman  first  ornamented  her  baskets  with 
some  mark  and  later  gave  it  some  name  suggested  by  its  form, 


KA-CHA-NAK  (  AKKOW-POINT  ). 


{Plate  ij 


or  whether  she  deliberately  copied  nature,  we  may  never  know. 
Personally,  I  have  no  doubt  that  all  of  the  designs  originated  in 
an  attempt  to  copy  nature,  and  were  afterwards  gradually  con 
ventionalized  until  in  some  instances  it  requires  a  vivid  imagina 
tion  to  recognize  in  a  design  any  semblance  of  the  object  whose 
name  it  bears. 

I  have  never  seen  in  any  Porno  basket  a  portrayal  of  an  event, 
or  any  attempt  whatever  at  "  picture  writing,"  and  I  am  per 
fectly  convinced  that  there  is  not  in  existence  a  Porno  basket 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


31 


which  is  in  that  sense  a  k'  history  basket."  Moreover,  I  see  in 
the  baskets  of  other  tribes  desig-ns  identical  with  or  similar  to 
those  I  know  in  the  Porno,  and  must  say  that  I  view  all  such  in 
terpretations  with  a  degree  of  distrust.  Before  beginning-  the 
study  of  Porno  designs,  I  had  been  given  by  others  certain  names 
for  designs,  which  I  accepted  as  correct  and  helped  to  dissemi 
nate  ;  but  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  I  find  that  in  several  instances 
I  have  never  had  these  names  from  a  single  Indian  source,  after 
as  many  as  a  hundred  inquiries  among-  different  tribes,  inquiries 
more  frequently  made  in  these  instances  because  these  were 
mooted  points.  It  does  not  necessarily  follow  that  these  de 
sig-ns  may  not  be  known  by  the  names  formerly  applied,  among 
some  small  tribe,  but  the  evidence  is  indisputable  that  among- 


KO-SHA,  OR  "ELBOW."    (LOWER  LAKE). 


[Plate  ib] 


the  leading-  Porno  tribes  these  designs  have  never  been  known 
by  those  names.  One  peculiarity  of  Porno  designs  is  that  there 
is  seldom  a  name  for  the  entire  desig-n  on  a  basket.  As  a  mat 
ter  of  fact,  the  Porno  woman  has  at  her  command  a  larg-e  stock 
of  simple  or  ROOT  desig-ns,  each  with  a  well  known  name.  These 
she  varies,  amplifies  and  combines  in  a  purely  artistic  manner. 
She  is  not  trying  to  write  a  history  of  an  occurrence,  or  to  em 
body  a  religious  belief.  Her  sole  aim  is  to  create  something- 
beautiful.  She  is  an  artist,  not  a  priestess  or  historian.  Before 


32 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


her  basket  is  started  she  has  in  her  mind's  eye  a  clear  picture  of 
it  as  completed  ;  she  counts  no  stitches  and  has  no  pattern  be 
fore  her.  She  may  have  as  her  ideal  a  design  she  has  seen,  or 
she  may  have  evolved  a  new  combination  ;  but  whether  it  takes 
a  year  or  twelve  years,  she  keeps  the  plan  clearly  in  view.  For 
the  combination  of  root  designs  she  has  no  name,  and  could  not 
well  have.  If  you  question  her,  she  will  analyze  the  intricate 
pattern  into  its  constituent  parts,  the  names  for  which  are  com 
mon  property.  She  does  not  know  it  as  a  whole,  but  only  as  a 
composite.  Again,  her  art  is  not  a  stationary  one,  a  slavish 
copying  of  others,  but  rather  a  progressive  one,  each  woman 
aiming  to  excel  in  the  beauty  of  her  product.  How  successful 
they  are  in  this  attempt  to  vary  and  beautify,  an  examination 


(  POTATO-HEAD). 


IP/at,'  i~\ 


of  a  well  selected  collection  of  Porno  baskets  will  show. 
Scarcely  two  are  alike,  and  when  we  consider  how  few  original 
designs  are  used,  we  cannot  but  find  our  admiration  for  their 
artistic  ability  growing  very  rapidly.  The  probabilities  are  that 
no  new  root  designs  are  being  evolved.  This  is  very  strongly 
indicated  by  the  fact  that  as  a  rule  the  designs  are  known  by 
the  same  names  by  different  tribes,  an  indication  that  the  root 
designs  were  already  well  known  before  the  original  people 
separated  into  the  present  many  tribes. 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


33 


We  may  now  proceed  to  a  consideration  of  some  of  the  de 
signs  most  commonly  used  among-  the  Pomos.  Perhaps  the  com 
monest  is  simply  a  triangle.  This  has  been  interpreted  erro 
neously  as  a  "hill"  or  a  "red  hill."  Throughout  Lake  county 
and  among  the  Sanel  and  Yokaia  Pomos  this  is  the  butterfly,  the 
idea  being  of  a  butterfly  with  folded  wings.  Some  very  beauti 
ful  designs  are  worked  out  with  this  alone. 

The  Calpella  and  Ballo-kai  Pomos  call  it  da-to-i-ka-ta  or  the 
"  old  design,"  indi 
cating  that  they  have 
borrowed  it.  In  one 
small  tribe  it  is  "big 
arrowhead"  In  some 
way  it  enters  into 
three-fourths  of  all 
Porno  baskets,  and 
the  name  butterfly  is 
by  far  most  common 
ly  used.  The  design 
called  "lightning 
pattern"  by  collect- 


A  CHU-SET  BOWL. 


[Plate  18} 


KA-CHA — "ARROW-POINTS.' 


[Plate  ZQ] 


34 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


A  CHIEF  OF  THE  FOMOS. 

ors  is  never  known  by  that  name  among:  the  Pomos.  In 
every  tribe  it  is  tsi-6t-sio,  or  "zigzag."  In  its  various  modi 
fications  it  is  used  very  frequently  by  them.  To  squares  or 
rhomboids,  however  arranged,  they  give  the  name  bu-she-mi-a, 
or  "deer-neck,"  the  idea  being  the  angle  between  the  deer's 
head  and  shoulders  and  neck;  rather  a  fanciful  idea,  but  one 
which  seems  to  have  taken  deep  root,  for  every  tribe  has  it.  The 
mark  like  a  quarter  note  in  music  is  the  Pomo's  idea  of  a  quail 
plume.  In  Ballo-kai  Porno  this  is  chi-kakh.  It  is  most  taste 
fully  used  and  in  some  of  its  adaptations  is  the  prettiest  of  all. 
Alternate  checks  of  white  and  color  in  a  circular  design  is 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


35 


BUTTERFLY  PATTERN  REPEATED. 


{.Plate  20] 


out  Lake  county   as   ka-wil-in    (Lower 

(Upper  Lake)   the  turtle  design.    Very  similar  is  that 

about  Clear  Lake  as  ka-na-di-wa-koi,  or  turtle  neck. 


universally  called 
bai-ya-kau,or  "holes 
in  a  fish-trap."  The 
idea  is  from  the  alter 
nate  light  and  dark 
in  a  fish  trap  basket 
of  unpeeled  willow. 

Acute  triangles, 
however  arranged, 
are  arrow-points,  or 
ka-cha;  plate  19, 
shows  how  beauti 
fully  they  can  be 
used.  The  same  de 
sign  is  used  halved, 
and  with  a  very  broad 
base  is  ka-cha-ma- 
to,  or  ' '  big  arrow 
head"  (plate  26). 

Plate  27  is  a  de 
sign  known  through- 
Lake)  or  ka-na-di-wa 
known 


'BU-SHE-MIA"  DESIGN,  IN  SPIRALS.  [Plate  21} 


36 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


POMO  "TSAIS." 


[Plate  22} 


An  odd  idea  is  embodied  in  a  design  known  as  ka-tuni-tah 
i-bah,  or  "lizard  tail,"  executed  thus  [  ~^],  the  idea  being-  of  a 
lizard's  tail  cut  off  and  wriggling. 

A  common,  and  one  of  the  finest,  Porno  designs  in  plate  17,  is 
known  widely  as  bu-di-le ;  bu  is  the  Indian  word  for  the  bulbous 
plant  known  as  Brodiaea,  used  as  food  by  the  Pomos,  and  di-le 
is  forehead.  Indians  have  frequently  given  me  the  translation 
"  potato  head,"  but  I  have  never  got  any  clue  to  the  connection 
between  the  name  and  the  design. 

Plate  15  is  a  very  common  design  among  the  Pomos,  and,  when 
well  executed,  one  of  the  most  beautiful.  Among  basket  col 
lectors  it  has  long  been  interpreted  as  a  "  hill  with  pine  trees." 

Inquiry  of  Indians  on  numerous  occasions  has  elucidated  but 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


37 


THE  SO-CALLED  "POND-LILY"  DESIGN. 


[Plate  23} 


one  answer,  KA-CHA,  or  KA-CHA-NAC,  ARROW  POINTS.  The  Pomos 
have  no  other  name  for  it.  The  Pomos  have  no  portrayal 
of  trees,  hills,  mountains,  rivers  or  sloughs.  I  question  if  they 
ever  attempt  flowers  or  leaves. ' 


A  VARIATION  OF  THE  QUAIL-TUKT  PATTERN. 


[Plate  24\ 


38 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


A  very  pretty  design,  often  found  on  coarse  bowls,  is  a  repre 
sentation  of  a  spotted  snake,  plate  11 .  The  Yokaias  and  Sanels 
call  it  sa-kal-le  or  garter  snake  ;  the  Calpella  and  Ballo-kai 
Pomos  have  the  very  odd  name  of  ho-do-du-du,  also  the  name 
of  a  spotted  snake. 

Deer  teeth,  snake,  water  scorpion,  grasshoppers'  shoulders 
and  ant,  and  many  other  designs,  I.  have  met,  but  I  have  not 
good  material  for  illustration  at  hand.  The  figures  of  men  and 


ARROW-POINT  DESIGNS  ON  A  "TSAI.' 


[Plate 


animals  are  .rather  rarely  used.     The}r  have  been  made  for  a 
very  long  time,  but  are  more  frequently  made  of  late  years. 

BASKETS   AND   THEIR   USES. 

The  Indian  has  a  name  for  each  weave  (which  also  may  be 
applied  to  the  form  most  commonly  made  in  that  weave)  and 
other  names  according  to  the  use. 

The  flat  baskets  which  we  generally  call  placques  are  used  by 
the  Indians  as  we  use  plates  and  platters,  also  as  winnowing 
baskets,  and  as  receptacles  for  cooked  food,  dried  fish,  or  other 
household  goods.  I  have  heard  that  the  Pomos  sometimes  use 
flat  baskets  in  a  gambling  game,  but  have  never  seen  one  so 
used.  The  generic  name  for  all  placques  of  whatever  weave,  is 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


39 


*^; 

*V.. 


BIG  ARROWHEAD  DESIGN. 

dala,  the  Indian  equivalent  of  our  word  "plate*."  They  speak 
of  a  dala  as  a  bam-tush  dala,  a  ti  dala,  a  tsai  dala,  etc.,  accord 
ing  to  the  weave. 

The  bowl-shaped  baskets  found  an  infinite  variety  of  uses  with 
the  Porno..  They  were  his  water  vessels,  and  the  smaller  ones 
his  drinking  cups.  After  heating  rocks  and  then  brushing  away 
the  coals  he  could  place  on  them  large  baskets  filled  with  meats 
or  mush  and  thoroughly  boil  the  food,  or  he  would  heat  rocks  and 
throw  into  the  baskets  of  food,  and  so  cook  it.  The  larger 
bowls  were  used  for  receptacles  for  clothing,  acorns,  etc.,  as 


*The  word  "dala"  is  derived  from  "dala  min,"  "to  cover,"  as  they  were  first  used  as 
covers  for  bowls,  but  the  word  now  conveys  the  idea  of  plate. 


40 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


V 


"TURTLE"  DESIGN  REPEATED. 


IP/ate  27} 


were  the  open  wicker-work  sha-kans.  The  Porno  name  for  a 
bowl-shaped  basket  used  for  food  was  chi-maa,  literally  "  mush- 
basket."  The  name  of  the  weave  might  be  prefixed,  but  as 
often  bam-tush  was  used  alone  as  the  name  of  a  tight  bowl. 

One  of  the  most  interesting-  of  all  baskets  was  the  mu-chi,  a 
basket  made  like  a  dala  but  with  a  strong  rim  of  willow,  and 
with  a  circular  hole  in  the  bottom.  This  basket  was  placed 
over  a  stone  and  used  as  the  mortars  of  the  Southern  tribes  are. 
The  Indian  woman  sat  flat  on  the  ground  and  held  the  mu-chi 
firmly  in  place  by  putting  a  leg  over  each  side  while  she  wielded 
a  heavy  stone  pestle  with  both  hands. 

The  mu-chi  was  usually  in  the  bam-tush  weave,  with  several 
ti  courses  to  give  it  added  strength.  In  its  construction  it  was 
woven  in  a  perfect  cone,  and  when  completed  the  bottom  was 


AN  ELEGANT  BAM-TUSH. 


[Plate  28\ 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


41 


cut  out  and  strong  fiber  woven  in  to  prevent  the  loose  ends  from 
wearing".  The  meal  when  ground  in  a  mu-chi  was  screened  in 
a  sieve  called  pase.  This*  was  a  basket  made  in  the  ti  weave, 
only  the  ribs  and  ti  courses  were  far  enough  apart  to  leave  a 
fine  mesh.  The  pase  answered  its  purpose  admirably. 


"LoL,"  OR  "LONG-POINT." 


[Plate  2Q\ 


QUAIL-PLUME"  DESIGN. 


42 


POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 


VARIATION  OF  ARROW-POINT  PATTERN.  [Plate  31} 

The  conical  burden  baskets  were  called  bu-gi  and  the  net 
which  supported  them  was  called  ka-bu.  Originally  the  head 
net  was  made  of  native  flax,  but  at  the  present  time  hop  twine 


A  POMO  "E-PI-CA.' 


[Plate 


A  GROUP  OF  POMO  BASKETS  OF  BAM-TUSH  WEAVE.  [Plate  34] 


44  POMO    INDIAN    BASKETS. 

is  almost  universally  used  for  it.    The  ka-bu  is  sometimes  orna 
mented  profusely  with  kaia  and  beautifully  woven. 

Three-stick  baskets  of  whatever  form  are  called  shi-bu  or  chi- 
bu  according-  to  the  dialect,  and  one-stick  baskets  tsai.  These 
names  are  used  regardless  of  whether  the  baskets  are  round  or 
oblong-  in  shape.  The  commoner  baskets  of  these  weaves  were 
used  as  mush  bowls  or  receptacles,  but  finely  woven  and  orna 
mented  baskets  were  the  treasures  of  the  family,  carefully  pre 
served,  presented  to  guests  (who  were  always  expected  to  re- 


A  BATU  AND  Two  BASKETS  IN  "CHIT-SIN"  WEAVE.  [Plate  33} 

ciprocate),  or  at  wedding's,  and  placed  with  the  deceased  on  the 
funeral  pyre.  At  the  last  they  all  found  their  end  in  the  latter 
way. 

A  curious  use  of  basketr}r  was  in  the  ba-tu  or  seed  beater,  a 
long-handled  basket  used  to  beat  seed  from  plants  into  burden 
baskets.  The  ba-tu  was  wielded  with  one  hand  while  the  other 
held  the  burden  basket  in  a  proper  position  to  catch  the  seed. 
The  ba-tu  was  woven  like  a  bam-tush  but  of  willow  sticks.  It 
was  reinforced  by  willow  sticks  passing  across  the  middle  to 
the  rim  on  each  side  and  tied  down  with  fibers. 

As  with  nearly  all  Western  Indians,  the  Porno  infant  was 
wrapped  in  swaddling  clothes  and  tightly  laced  in  a  pappoose 
basket.  The  pappoose  basket  of  the  Porno  is  a  neat  piece  of 
weaving,  but  was  never  so  ornate  as  those  of  the  Klamaths  and 
many  other  tribes. 

Ukiah,  Cal. 


